I'm not a Vampire!
by Juniper Night
Summary: Half demon. Vampire. Two totally different things. Why can't muggles just get it right for once? Officially Aqua-Rae
1. Chapter 1

Raven had known it was going to be a trying day. She had known it the moment her meditation had been interrupted by Starfire's Tameranian song of greeting to the Titans East. So it figured that instead of dealing with just one annoying titan, she would have to deal with two.

"C'mon, Raven, you know you wanna play volleyball!" Beast Boy whined. He was like a mosquito in that respect; an incessant keening in your ear. He kept asking no matter how many times she refused.

"Please? I'll make you triple tofu delight," he wheedled, wiggling his eye brows.

"Double no," was her only response, not even bothering to look up from the thick tome on her lap.

"Give it up, Beast Boy," _Thank you Speedy_. "Vampires don't like playing sports in the sun." _I thought too soon_.

"I'm not a vampire." She stated, glaring at him. Speedy was undeterred.

"That's exactly what a vampire would say." He retorted. All the eyes in the room turned towards Speedy and her with that last remark, and Raven could practically hear Bee's mental face palm. "Think about it, the evidence is all there," he claimed, addressing our recently acquired audience. "She's deathly pale, she wouldn't even _touch_ the garlic bread the last time we got together, and she skulks in the shadows or under her hood, like, all the time. Look, even the book she's reading is probably from the medieval age! Where do you think she gets her blood?"

The pulsing vein on Raven's forehead was clearly visible as she tersely stated "I am not, have never been, and never will be, a vampire. I am pale because my skin lacks melanin. That garlic bread made half of you throw up. I do not hide in shadows, this book was published a little less than three years ago, and furthermore, I do _not_ drink blood."

"Can you prove that you don't drink blood?" He pressed as he steepled his fingers together.

"My irises aren't red, or black, or even gold." She shot back.

"You could be wearing contacts" Speedy relentlessly persisted.

"Vampires can't wear contacts. The venom that runs throughout their bodies dissolves anything that may be able to get pass their diamond-hard skin."

"How do you know that?"

"I read." This was starting to sound suspiciously like an interrogation. He was like a Robin-clone.

"And if I don't? If you're making this all up?" He asked imperiously, raising a brow.

"I have a heartbeat. Vampires are dead. Even the muggles who make those pointless video games know that much." Azar, if he didn't shut up soon, something was going to blow. Her failed meditation attempt this morning had been the only one in far too long, and this was stretching her control beyond her limits, Trigon or no Trigon.

"I still don't believe you." That did it.

She stood up abruptly and all but slammed her book shut. Making sure to look everyone, especially Speedy, in the eye, she practically growled out "I will never, _ever_, sparkle in the sunlight. End of discussion." And with a spin of her heel, and a whirl of her cloak, she left her bemused comrades standing dumbly in the ops room.

**A/N so yeah, this borrows several elements from the 'twilight' vampire, but honestly even if you're a twilight hater, there is no mush/drama/angst/etc. so you're safe. This was not intended to be a romance, but it is fan fiction – who am I to stop you from imagining, embellishing, or culminating? You guys are probably sick of hearing this, but please, review! Anonymous reviews accepted! You make authors feel warm and buttery (bloody?) inside when you do so!**


	2. Chapter 2

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos… Azarath Metrion Zinthos… Azarath Metrion Zinthos… Azara…"

Raven bit her lip to keep from growling. It was 5:30 in the morning and Speedy was 'covertly' watching her from the roof exit. He probably thought he could escape her notice because her back was turned, but the truth was that his emotions felt like they were grinding into her skull. Was it really possible for him to believe so thoroughly that she was a vampire? She sincerely wished she could just block him out, or better yet, tell him to quit acting like a stalker and leave her be. But blocking her empathy was like telling her less supernatural senses to stop sensing, only harder, because there was no physical part of her that was responsible for it. Telling him to go away would merely lead to him trying other methods, methods that without a doubt would become progressively more annoying and invasive of her privacy.

As the rising sun's rays gossamered over the top of Titan's Tower, Raven had an idea. She had meant it when she said she would never sparkle in the sunlight. What better time to prove it to Speedy then now, when he still was under the impression that she believed she was alone? Unfastening her broach, she allowed her cloak to puddle beneath her levitating figure, and went back to her mantra as if that were the only reason it had been interrupted.

)o(

Around 8:30, Speedy's boredom got the best of him, and he left her alone on the rooftop in favor of breakfast… and a new strategy. Raven shook her head at his lack of concentration. Soon after she had shed her cloak, the lack of anything to do had lulled him to sleep, and he had only been awake again for another ten or so minutes before succumbing to his boredom – not that she minded. For the next five minutes, Raven imagined him under the tutelage of the Azarian monks, before refastening her cloak and phasing to the kitchen.

Aside from a few jumps – many of the honorary titans were still unused to her sudden comings and goings – her arrival garnered little more than a few 'good mornings' from everyone but Speedy, Aqualad, and Beast Boy, all of whom were staring at her intensely.

_Great,_ she thought bitterly, _if I can't disprove my supposed vampyric state to Speedy, then I'll have to deal with him for a couple of days each month. If I can't disprove such to Beast Boy, I'll have to live with it. I would have thought Aqualad would be more sensible, though. At the very least, one would think he was used to Speedy's antics_.

Getting out the necessary materials for making tea, Raven set the water to boil and casually leaned against the counter while letting her gaze rest on the three people whose eyes offended her. Aqualad blushed slightly and looked away as Speedy and Beast Boy turned slightly and tried to act natural.

_Weird._

)o(

Raven had a very hard time not laughing as she walked through Jump's shopping district. She had changed into one of her limited sets of civilian clothes – the product of Starfire's fascination with the mall of shopping – and tied her hair back. The citizens of Jump were so used to seeing her in uniform and in battle, often with her hood obscuring her face, that she did not merit a second glance. The same could not be said for the pair walking a carefully maintained distance behind her. Did they really think she – and the people on the sidewalk – wouldn't notice a man decked out in trench coat, hat, and sunglasses leading a dirty greenish dog by a paper clip leash? Honestly, it was just comical. Raven wished she had brought a camera.

Temporarily putting them out of her mind, she walked into a Barnes and Noble book store. She had been meaning to come here for ages, but had put it off in favor of less commercial bookstores. Now that she had finished her 'medieval aged' book, she decided to look into some modern literature. Behind her she heard a clerk telling tall, dark, and obvious he had to leave his dog outside. No doubt they had forgotten the no pets rule maintained by many shops and public buildings. Drifting through the aisles, she was almost surprised by how many interesting looking books there were. There were post-apocalyptic stories, novels about the undead, historical fiction narratives, and more than any other topic, there were tales of magic. Much browsing ensued before she finally chose one book on a faerie changeling, one about a future where humans were barcoded, and one about superheroes who lived on an island, the Imagine Nation, which she was admittedly curious about.

She almost might have been able to forget her followers – she had not seen or sensed Speedy in the rather cavernous bookstore – but as she left, a 'gween puppy' managed to get away from the curious toddler who was playing with its tale long enough to bark several times into the open doorway.

"_ahem-stalker_" she coughed into her hand as she passed. Raven had never realized a dog could appear quite so sheepish until that moment.

)o(

"Hey Raven! Where you been?" Robin asked, noting her civilian attire as he wiped the sweat from his brow.

Raven stopped at the edge of the outdoor training course and held up her bag. "I bought some more books - and from this era too."

Robin chuckled, guessing what she was alluding too, although he was pretty sure not all her books were, indeed, from this millennia, let alone era. "Speedy still think you're a vampire?" He inquired.

"Speedy, Beast Boy, and Aqualad, actually," she corrected.

"Really, Aqualad? " He queried, seeming surprised.

"All three of them were staring at me this morning, and I've been followed by Speedy and Beast Boy all afternoon."

"Oh, well if that's all, then I don't think you need to worry about Aqualad believing you're a vampire," He smirked. Raven didn't like his expression.

"What?"

Robins face was filled with mirth as he too casually replied "Nothing, nothing," and walked away, shoulders shaking.

"Boys," Raven shook her head and continued to the tower.

)o(

**A/N: Ok, so I know I said this was both complete and a one-shot, but a lot of people liked it and I wanted to continue it, so here it is. All that you see here was written at or on the way to a TSA state conference, otherwise it might have come out sooner, because I could post sooner, or not at all, 'cause I wouldn't have had 7 hours' worth of bus ride to write this. Reviews still welcome!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Belated Disclaimer: Errr… I own nothing**

It was interesting, really, how something with such a steady rhythm could make one lose track of the time. Raven found it hypnotic almost, watching the tides rush past her feet. They were predictable, yes, but peaceful as well.

_In… out… in… out…_

She had steadily ignored things like this more and more as her 15th birthday had approached, not wishing to know what she would only destroy. But now that Trigon had been defeated, it was like seeing earth for the first time all over again. Noticing these little details was like another form of meditation for her. She still needed her usual meditation to keep her emotions under check of course, but this was good for thinking and finding her center.

"Hey, Raven," a voice greeted her. Raven might have jumped if her inner peace hadn't been so complete just moments ago.

"Hello, Aqualad." She should have realized that if anyone could manage to sneak up on her at that time, it'd be Aqualad. The pulse of his mind and aura seemed less like a heartbeat and more like the tides, such that he blended in almost perfectly with her other senses and her recent train of thought.

"Do you do this often?" He asked, nodding towards her sand and salt covered toes.

"No, I'm just waiting for Speedy to come back." For some unfathomable reason, Aqualad seemed to deflate slightly, so Raven allowed just a hint of her amusement to color her voice as she said "he's been attempting to spy on me since breakfast. He even enlisted Beast Boy in following me around Jump this afternoon. From what I've seen, it's amazing he's able to maintain a secret identity."

Aqualad laughed. "Subtlety is definitely not one of his strong points," he agreed, "but why would he want to stalk you?"

Here Raven sighed. "He is still laboring under the impression that I'm undead…_ you_ don't think I'm a vampire, do you?" She shot accusingly, her tone suddenly sharp.

"No, of course not!" Aqualad sputtered. "Why would you think I think that?"

"Well, all three of you were staring at me this morning," she shrugged, "I assumed you were in league with Speedy, like Beast Boy."

'_Shoot, I knew she noticed that!'_ Aloud he said "Was I staring at you? I must apologize, that was rude and entirely unintentional, and…"

"Aqualad, are you all right?" Raven interrupted, looking a bit unsure of herself. For all of her empathic ability, she proved extraordinarily lacking in her people skills, twelve times out of ten.

"I'm fine. I was just wondering if, maybe, you might like to – it's up to you, of course – go out, to dinner… with me?"

Raven stared, and then stared some more. Then she vaguely remembered to breath, before going back to staring. Her mind was blank of all thought, save for two things: '_Did someone just ask me out? Surely not, I must be imaging things, or maybe someone drugged me and I'm hallucinating, and soon I'll wake up in some villain's lair, but Aqualad couldn't have just asked me out. For Azar's sake, he's _Aqualad.' Underneath all of this she continued to give manual instructions to her respiratory system: '_In… out… in… out…"_

Aqualad took her shocked sort of stupor as rejection and turned away muttering "Right… sorry, shouldn't have asked."

"No, wait! Aqualad! Dinner would be… nice," Raven finished softly, breaking out of her stupor.

)o(

"Well, that was a big waste of time," Beast Boy remarked in frustration. After Speedy had finally realized that The Subject was no longer inside the building, they had spent the better part of two hours walking around Jump City trying to relocate her. In the meantime, Beast Boy had had a stroke of insight and realized they would be less conspicuous if Speedy lost the coat and Beast Boy changed out of his dirty uniform. The dirt had been helpful in concealing his green fur as a dog, but now it just made him stick out as muddy.

"Don't be so sure, Grass Stain. Look over there."

Indeed, on the other side of the street, Beast Boy was able to spot a girl dressed in dark shades with violet hair. And the figure walking next to her looked like… Aqualad?

"No, Aqualad must be her next victim! I can't let that happen, not to Unitard Guy," Speedy proclaimed as the chatting couple walked casually into a small Italian restaurant. "Proceed with caution," Speedy warned gravely.

)o(

"So, you're saying that if you go a mile south of the docks, there's actually a reef? I would've thought the water too cold for coral this far north," Raven commented as the waitress sat them down at a table for two.

"Normally, it would be, but there's a hot spring that feeds into the bay and warms the water a few degrees Celsius," Aqualad replied, gesturing with his hands.

"Maybe you could show me sometime. Just water, please," Raven responded before answering the waitress's not yet asked question.

"I'll have the same, please. I don't know, it's not the same on a sub or behind a mask…"

"Who said anything about subs and scuba gear?" Raven interrupted. At Aqualad's puzzled expression, she continued "After nearly drowning three times on underwater missions, did you not assume I would come up with some precautionary method?"

For the second time that day, Aqualad found himself blushing "Uuuhhh…"

"I'll take that as a no," Raven's mouth twitched slightly up at the corners, "but then, when you can breathe underwater, it must not be a problem that comes up often. For those of us who aren't born with gills, there's a plant called Gillyweed. When eaten, it allows one to swim and breathe underwater for about an hour. I've tested it once or twice already, and it works well enough."

"Seriously? That's cool. I've never heard of it before, though," Aqualad said, as he tried to recall a plant like that.

"I'd be surprised if you had," Raven smiled again, her lips stretching infinitesimally farther than before. "It's a magical plant, rare even in the wizarding world. I had to go to London just to get a few fistfuls of it."

"So, are you from the Wizard's World?" He inquired curiously.

"No, I am not from the Wizarding World," she corrected. "I'm from Azarath. It's a dimension of pacifists." Seeing that he had not quite painted a good picture in his head yet she said "It's like a city, a monastery, and a library, all rolled up into one collection of floating rocks."

"Kind of sounds like where I'm from, minus the floating rock part," Aqualad chuckled. "So how did you end up here?"

Raven swirled the ice in her cup with a straw absentmindedly, and there was an awkward lull in the conversation for a few moments. Finally Raven mumbled quietly "I'd rather not talk about that."

"That's ok, I shouldn't have asked. If it helps, I don't like to talk about why I left Atlantis either." Aqualad said gently, grasping one of her hands as her violet eyes met his own.

)o(

"Oh my gosh, they're holding hands!" Beast Boy whispered excitedly to Speedy. His response was a whack in the back of the head.

Ignoring another calculating look from their waiter – whom had looked at the two boys oddly when they requested a table for two – Speedy hissed "Raven may be targeting Aqualad as her next prey, and you're squealing like a school girl!"

Beast Boy's response to Speedy's words was immediate; his face flushed archer red* and he mumbled something sheepishly.

"What?" Speedy asked somewhat offhandedly. He was still watching the couple, whom had resumed their conversation, and was only partially listening to what Beast Boy had to say.

"Nothing," was his only response.

)o(

"You look beautiful," Aqualad stated, seemingly out of nowhere. Raven shrugged dismissively as she felt her cheeks flush slightly.

She really needed to meditate.

With her control in such a fragile state, the small flare in her emotions was enough to briefly expand her mental barrier, before years of practice kicked in and automatically returned her mind to its usual equilibrium. And in that fraction of a second, she sensed two very familiar presences.

She jumped a little before groaning, "O' Azar, no!"

"What's wrong?" Aqualad asked, ever the concerned gentleman.

She ducked her head slightly, letting her hair obscure her face. Peeking from behind the thick purple curtain, it did not take long to locate the tops of Speedy' and Beast Boy's heads peering at them over menus. "Don't look now, but we've been trailed," Raven muttered, still effectively using her shoulder length hair to keep anyone from reading her lips.

"Huh?" Aqualad was now thoroughly confused.

Raven leaned forward to let him in on the update, but never got the chance.

Speedy was on his feet in a flash "NOOOOO, you can't bite him Rae!" He shouted across the restaurant.

All the chatter in the little Italian restaurant ceased instantly.

Raven's shoulders stiffened, and she slowly got up and turned to face Speedy with the rigidity of a streetlamp and the dignity he himself lacked. "For the last time, I am _not_ a vampire," she very nearly growled out, eyes narrowing dangerously.

"But-"

"You know, some of us are actually paying for a nice evening," she stated irritably, gesturing vaguely at the other diners before crossing her arms sternly.

"Exactly, and you would have ruined it for them if you'd– is that garlic bread?" He paused halfway to them, staring at the half-eaten garlic bread on Raven's plate.

"Yes," she said tersely. "So?"

"But vampires can't eat garlic, so you must not be…" Realization dawned upon Speedy's face.

"You're a genius, Speedy. No, I'm not a vampire; I'm just a girl who's really tempted to snap your bow in half right about now," She said indignantly.

"Uuuhhhh… sorry?" he said looking guiltily. His best friend stared back at him stonily faced, sure that his chances of ever being with Raven were done for.

Almost as one unit they shook their heads and turned away, Aqualad leaving some cash on the table.

And then a miracle – in Aqualad's book – happened. Raven turned slightly towards him as they walked onto the street and asked "So, you up to explore that reef together next week?"

**A/n What's happened to me? I wrote something mushy and romantic, help! On the bright side, at least it's Aquarae. Please review, and tell me if you like it. I'm not sure if I kept all the dialogue in character, so please feel free to critique on that.**

**Oh, BTW,**

** Sapphire – that line is what finally convinced me to write this, after about 20 minutes of staring blankly at my computer in my little rocking chair, giggling and/or cackling at random intervals. I almost hit my head on the bed post. Lesson: laughing in a rocking chair is a bad idea.**


End file.
